


Your Own Worst Enemy

by keeperofhounds



Category: Infinity Train (Cartoon), 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-16
Updated: 2021-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:27:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,887
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27592717
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/keeperofhounds/pseuds/keeperofhounds
Summary: Toshinori is a pro hero with an injured body and limited time. Now he finds himself on a mysterious train where he is told to take a journey of self-discovery.Izuku is a child with big dreams. Now he finds himself on a train with a former pro-hero and many different creatures.Will either be able to get their numbers to zero or be doomed to an endless journey?
Relationships: Midoriya Izuku & Yagi Toshinori | All Might
Comments: 5
Kudos: 45





	1. The Cat's Car

Toshinori wondered if he would ever find a way off this train. As he opened the strange red door at the end of the car, he couldn’t help but marvel at the impossibility of the entire situation. He never would have thought that investigating the train on the roof would have spirited him away to another world. 

The train was nothing he could have ever imagined. He would go so far as to say that it could be a product of magic instead of a quirk. There aren’t any known to be so powerful. The train car he was leaving had people made of ice in a never ending winter. The one before had plant people. Yet, he still didn’t understand why he was on the train.

One-One, the strange orb from the screen, told him that the entire point of the train was to get better, but Toshinori couldn’t bring himself to believe that. In what universe is kidnapping people from their lives help them? There were people who needed him, he didn’t have the time to just disappear from the world without a word. The villains would just get bold.

That isn’t to say that he didn’t try to get off the train, but it seemed impossible with those roach-like creatures running around in the barren wasteland. While Toshinori was confident he could take them, that still left the issue of his time limit and the dangers of overexposure. Even if he got off there was no telling how far away from Japan he was.

He looked at his left hand. The number 537 glowed eerily from the palm. It had gone up since he first started his journey trying to get off the train, starting at 150.

Crossing the gangway connection of the train, he opened the next door which was identical to the last. Walking inside he was met with the sight of a cluttered mess of a car, with bookshelves stacked to the ceiling . It looked like a study or a collectors room, although Toshinori couldn’t imagine how someone would have so many different objects in one place.

“You know, usually people announce their arrival when they walk into another's abode.” said a femimine voice.

Toshinori flinched, slowly turning to look for the owner of the voice, but he couldn’t find anyone, only a cat with a vest and tie. 

“Yes, you must be a passenger,” The Cat spoke, “two in one day, I must have a knack at running into kittens and toms.” The Cat jumped, landing on a nearby shelf. “This is a personal record for me.”

The skeleton man couldn’t help but watch the Cat with a gaped mouth. While he had known there were strange creatures in the train, this was the first one which could actually speak. He knew people with animal parts, but other than Nedzu (who no one could really tell what animal he was) it was very unlikely to meet a talking animal. Although he should have expected as much from this strange train.

The Cat tilted her head. “What cat got your tongue?” 

“Sorry, you just surprised me,” Toshinori rubbed his head. “this past month has been strange for me.”

The Cat sat down at the edge. “Hm, I can imagine most passengers have a hard time adapting, especially the older ones.” 

Although one comment did catch Toshinori’s attention. “Kitten? Are there others like me on this train?” He couldn’t help but feel outraged. How many more people are on this train?

The Cat took no heed at his tone. “Why of course, the train is filled with passengers like you, but it’s unlikely you’ll ever meet them, what with the sheer size of it all. I found the kitten wandering all on his lonesome in another car, he just needed a place to rest before going on his merry way. And in my kindness I provided it.”

“May I meet him?” Toshinori asked, he needed to know if the child was okay. “Where is he?”

“Asleep, he seemed to be a newer passenger,” The cat leaned forward. “but let's talk about you.”

“What?”

“Well you are on this train for a reason, aren’t you? I imagine you are working hard to get that number of yours down to zero.”

Toshinori looked at the glowing number on his hand. He would love to get off this train, but for some reason he just hasn’t been getting the results he wanted. The number hadn’t dropped, instead going higher. At the very least the denizens weren’t going out of their way to hurt him. The number didn’t matter right now though.

Toshinori clenched his fist, covering the glowing number. “It’s none of your concern.”

The Cat hummed, as if she didn’t believe him, “Shame, but a word of advice as a denizine of this here train: you shouldn’t go off alone. There is much to see and learn when there are others by your side. Some train cars are more dangerous than others…” As the Cat lowered her gaze, it didn’t seem as if she was talking specifically to Toshinori. “I should know that.”

The silence was ominous, it seemed that the Cat had experience with passengers such as himself. “So what this One-One fellow said… is it true?”

“About going back to your home? Yes, that always seems to be the most surefire way home.” The Cat raised a paw toward his clenched hand. “Numbers don’t lie Tom. Get that number down to zero and you’ll have your own little door home.”

The sound of shoes against wood banged across the car. Turning toward the source, Toshinori spotted a ten year old boy. He was hidden behind one of the bookshelves, not wanting to interrupt the conversation between the older man and the Cat. In his hand he clutched a little ornament which looked damaged. He didn’t seem to know what to do with himself now that all the attention was directed at him.

“Ah, Kitten, did you have a good nap?” The Cat asked. She leaned forward bouncing off the shelf onto the table beside the boy's shelf. “Come in, come in, there’s no need to be shy, Kitten.”

Toshinori watched as the boy slowly walked to the middle of the room, stopping in front of Toshinori. The boy fidgeted under his stare, lightly biting his lower lip and hesitantly waved his hand. “Hi…”

Toshinori nodded, he didn’t really feel confident enough in his current state. A year before he could give a child a confident smile and a statement that all would be well. Now he could barely even take care of himself. He didn’t have the energy or strength he used to. Not to mention he’s now a walking skeleton who vomited blood most of the time. There is no way a child would feel safe around someone like him.

Unbeknownst to Toshinori his number went up to 560. 

“What is it you have in your hands?” the Cat asked, peering at the object in the boy's hand.

The boy carefully lifted it. “You said that this was your treasure car, I wanted to thank you for taking care of me… you said a villain broke most of your stuff.” The boy lifted the ornament, it was a little statue set of a boy with a cat. “I couldn’t save some of the other stuff but I tried to put it back together, I just thought that you wanted some help in salvaging some of the stuff.”

The Cat watched the little figurine, gently taking it from the boy. Toshinori saw a familiar expression cross the Cat's face as she stared at the object. It was one he was especially familiar with: regret and loss. “My, aren’t you a little hero helping an old cat like me.”

“You’re not old!”

The Cat lightly headbutted the child. “Thank you for that. You have no idea how much this means to me.” The Cat rubbed against the boy, purring in delight at the kind gesture.

Toshinori couldn’t help but think about how such a small act could make a grand impact. The number on his hand shifted to 490.

The Cat shifted towards Toshinori, “Kitten this is… why, where are my manners, I have neglected to get your name, Tom.”

“Toshinori Yagi.”

“This is Toshinori. He is also a passenger on this train much like yourself. This little kitten here is Izuku Midoriya.”

Izuku looked at Toshinori, he threw up his hand showing off his own number shined 115. “So, you’re like me?”

Toshinori knelt down, showing his own glowing digit. “That’s right young man, it seems we’re on the same boat.”

Izuku looked towards the Cat. “So, what do we do now?”

The Cat stretched. “We? There is no we, Kitten. You both need to travel along the cars and do as the conductor said.” the Cat pointed at the door leading out of the car. “There isn’t much that I myself can do for you.”

Toshinori started to walk towards the door. It looked just like all the other doors he’s walked through. Red with half of an infinity symbol on it. The symbol stood out vertically on the door dead center of the door. He bet that with a simple twist it would open just as easily. A counterclockwise rotation is always enough to get the door open.

“Will I ever see you again?” Izuku asked, shyly. He didn’t want to leave his new friend behind, and this cat seemed to know all there is to know about this mysterious train.

The Cat eyed Izuku. There was an emotion on her face that Toshinori couldn’t place. Although considering that his interactions with sentient animals was limited he might be thinking too much about it.

“I would hope so, Kitten.” She nudged the boy towards the door, and towards Toshinori. “Now go out there and make some friends, learn some lessons. You aren’t going to learn anything here with this old cat.”

Izuku glanced towards the exit. He quickly hugged the Cat and raced towards the exit, past Toshinori. “Goodbye Samantha! I’ll never forget you!”

The Cat chuckled, turning to face Toshinori, “Take care of the Kitten would you kindly? Kittens need indomitable figures who are willing to look after them.”

Toshinori couldn’t help but think there was more to those words. The Cat spoke with clear regret in her voice.

Toshinori cleared his throat. “Don’t worry little miss, I’ll take care of young Midoriya, you can count on me.”

“Take care of yourself as well. Izuku would be terribly upset if you got hurt on his account.”

Toshinori’s eyes widened, but before he could answer, Izuku called out to him.

“Come on Mr. Yagi! We need to get on the next car!”

Eyeing the Cat, the very strange cat, Toshinori stepped out of the car and headed towards the next car. He placed a hand on Izuku’s shoulder and gripped the handle of this new car.

“Come, young Midoriya, onto the next one.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you want to talk and ask questions you can find me on Tumblr as Keeperofhounds.


	2. The Jeopardy Car

Izuku wanted to help Mr. Yagi, it’s what heroes did. Especially a child who wanted to be the type of hero who could save people with a smile on his face. He thought that helping the old man who was kind enough to help him get home would be a good start.

Only it wasn’t that simple. They had passed seven cars since leaving the cat’s car. Izuku had learned a lot about the mysterious train he had boarded. Train cars varied in size on the inside and environment. 

In five of the cars visited, there wasn’t much issue in finding the exit and opening the door. It was as simple as walking to the end of the car and opening the red door to get out. Samantha had said the train cars would be different. Almost like stepping into another world.

These worlds varied from peaceful to dangerous, although since starting his journey Izuku hadn’t been to any dangerous cars. If Izuku was luck, he and Mr. Yagi wouldn’t find any of the more dangerous cars. The Cat said it was a possibility given the sheer size of the train.

Two other cars the duo visited required solving puzzles. They were nothing particularly dangerous, one car had Mr. Yagi throw a bullseye target to unlock the door. The last car needed to be opened by answering a complicated looking math problem. Izuku had no illusion that this was adult math, but he wouldn’t have minded trying to solve it. 

Now they were walking across the gangway connection, Izuku couldn’t help but look at Mr. Yagi. The younger boy didn’t know much about the older man considering that he avoided talking about his personal life. The only thing they really knew about each other was that Mr. Yagi had a quirk and Izuku didn’t.

A small ominous voice in head told him that being quirkless is exactly why Mr. Yagi didn’t want his help. Izuku shook his head banishing the thought, Mr. Yagi was nicer than most adults he’s ever met and the man wasn’t his classmates. Even if it was because of his quirklessness, Izuku was willing to do whatever it took to prove those thoughts wrong.

Izuku’s number shifted to 120.

“Young Midoriya? Are you alright?” 

Izuku’s head snapped towards Mr. Yagi. “Yeah, I’m fine. No need to worry.”

They stood in front of the entrance to the next car. Izuku couldn’t help but imagine what sort of mysteries were hidden beyond it. Would it be a destination? A puzzle? Anything seemed possible on this train.

Mr. Yagi unlocked the door. Twisting the symbol until he heard a click. The man looked at Izuku. “Stay behind me, Young Midoriya.”

Izuku obediently followed Mr. Yagi’s directions.

Pushing the door open, Mr. Yagi and Izuku look at each other, neither wanting to enter an unknown location. Mr. Yagi gently grips Izuku’s shoulder and they walk into the car. Once both were inside the entrance they came through shuts closed. 

The slam startles them causing Mr. Yagi to grip Izuku tightly. Izuku fearfully grips Mr. Yagi’s loose shirt. He wonders what could be in this car.

In the blink of an eye, Izuku and Mr. Yagi find themselves separated from each other.

The room brightens as the lights flicker to life. Music starts playing in the background, similar to some sort of elevator music. The tune was catchy and likely to become an annoying earworm down the line.

“THIS IS JEOPARDY!” A disembodied voice said to the passengers.

Looking down Izuku found himself standing on a podium which looked unlike any he had seen before. Frantically looking around he saw Mr. Yagi stood on a similar podium, but they weren’t alone.

Between Izuku and Mr. Yagi’s podium was a deer? The deer stood there, blankly chewing on what Izuku could only assume was grass. The animal wore some ear plugs, probably to cancel out some of the noise.

“What’s going on?!” Izuku cried, clutching his head. This was too crazy.

“Calm down, young Midoriya. We don’t seem to be in any danger.” Mr. Yagi said, trying to calm the young boy down.

This was a surprisingly common occurrence for Izuku. Despite living in a world where his friend could create explosions from the palm of his hands, Izuku still found things that surprised him about the world. The train put everything to shame.

The deer turned its head to stare at Izuku. It’s beady black eyes stared unblinking, as it continued to chew on its grass. The deer snorted as if to issue a challenge.

Izuku couldn’t help but stare at how normal looking the resident of this cart was. Samantha told him about residents, she was a talking cat. Now there was a seemingly normal deer in a game show car which only drove home how different things were on this train. Somehow it wasn’t the puzzles or the cars, but the animals.

“PLEASE WELCOME TODAY'S CONTESTANTS.”

A screen showed Mr. Yagi’s face. “A PRO HERO FROM MINATO, TOKYO, JAPAN. TOSHINORI YAGI!”

Izuku’s head snapped toward Mr. Yagi. He was a pro? If things weren’t looking so weird he would be begging for an autograph. Maybe he would have just died of happiness too. A real live pro!

The screen changes to the deer. “OUR RETURNING CHAMPION. A DEER FROM I HAVE NO IDEA WHERE, ALAN DRACULA!”

Lastly, Izuku’s face appears on the screen. “A STUDENT FROM MUSTAFA, JAPAN. IZUKU MIDORIYA!”

At the announcements the speakers played the sound of a cheering crowd and clapping. “AND NOW HERE IS THE HOST OF JEOPARDY, TRAGEDY MASK!”

As the “crowd” cheered, a living mask with a sad face appeared onto the stage. It was silver and missing the other half but it looked like those mask icons people saw in theaters, but usually those had a happy mask next to it. This one was just sad.

“Hello, folks.” The Tragedy Mask said, sadly. They sounded as if they were singing. “I am your host, Tragedy Mask.” The mask sighed. “Today we are here for an exciting day of Jeopardy, with some very special guests. The rules are simple: win the round and the door will unlock…”

The screen behind the mask changed into three columns. Each square on the column started from 50 before increasing to 1000. The title for each column was as follows: Grass, the Train, and Heroes.

“Each participant is to answer as many questions as possible and collect the highest amount of points possible, who ever has the highest amount wins.”

Izuku hesitantly raised his hand. “Um, how is…” He looked at the deer. “Alan Dracula going to answer these questions, I don’t think he talks.”

“Young Midoriya, don’t be rude…” Mr. Yagi said, although even he looked like he was wondering the same thing.

Tragedy Mask, sighed. “We here on the train strive for inclusiveness between passengers, and residents which is why we accommodate for any form of communication that our participants might have.”

‘That doesn’t answer the question…’ Izuku thought, but he had heard about animals with quirks. The principal of UA high school was an animal with a quirk, maybe this deer had something too.

“I think there used to be a show like this…” Mr. Yagi commented, he leaned forward. “Hold on sir, are there any consequences if we lose this challenge? If so I would like young Midoriya to abstain from participating.”

The comment hit Izuku hard. This was a game show, did the older man not think the boy was capable of pulling his own weight. “Mr. Yagi! Don’t worry I can do this, I know I can, please let me try.”

Mr. Yagi looked at Izuku, giving him a stern look. “Not if it means you risk injury.”

Izuku was interrupted before he could argue further. 

“Negative on both counts. There are no penalties against passengers other than failure to unlock the door. Although if either passenger wins all passengers present can pass through. Passengers are in fact encouraged to work together in winning the game. If you lose you only have to participate again in this dead end performance…”

It seemed to Izuku that the Tragedy Mask didn’t really want to be in this car. Poor guy.

The Tragedy Mask turned to Alan Dracula. “Alan Dracula as the returning champion you have the first pick for our question.”

Alan Dracula chewed on his grass, he swallowed his meal, letting out a loud cry.

“Grass for 1000, an excellent choice.”

The screen changed, displaying a statement: It is another name for Hordeum jubatum.

Mr. Yagi quickly slammed the button, “What is Barley?” 

The speakers buzzed, a noise signaling the answer as wrong.

“Negative.” Tragedy Mask said, taking no amusement from the mistake, or anything really. “Midoriya, you were second so you can steal his question.”

“... I don’t know.” Izuku had only slammed the button to be able to answer the question before the deer. He had also hoped that Mr. Yagi would know. Grass isn’t something he was taught in school.

“I see…” Tragedy Mask sighed. “Alan Dracula?”

The deer made no sound. Although both passengers witness an incredible sight of the deer's tail changing into a squirrel tail.

Mr. Yagi spit blood from his mouth in surprise. Hurrying to cover his mouth so that Izuku wouldn’t notice.

“Woah! So cool, a shapeshifter quirk?!” Forgetting the failure to answer the question, Izuku couldn’t help but marvel at the deer and the apparent ease he had as changing his shape.

The speakers dinged, signaling the answer as correct.

“That’s right, Squirrel tail grass is another name for Hordeum janubatum.”

Mr. Yagi groaned. Izuku turned to the older man. “Don’t worry, Mr. Yagi, this was only the first question. We’ll just get the other ones!”

The man clutched the side of his chest, raising a thumbs up at Izuku.

Answering any of the questions on the grass column ended in failure. They were at a disadvantage against a creature that lived off grass and apparently knew the different varieties and facts about them. Izuku honestly would have never expected anyone to have so much knowledge about grass. It was even more embarrassing since the deer never made any real attempt to press the buzzer. Alan Dracula only answered the question after he and Mr. Yagi failed.

The show was currently on a break with Tragedy Mask mumbling about how was a thespian and didn’t belong on reality sets. Alan Dracula was trying to eat through the podium and was surprisingly successful at it. Izuku and Mr. Yagi were together trying to figure out how to win the game. 

Izuku was feeling good about the next columns. The Train could be referring to the one there were on which means they had more knowledge about it than grass. Heroes is another category that Izuku was confident about, there was no one more knowledgeable than him when it came to heroes. Not to mention Mr. Yagi was a pro hero so he probably knew all about heroes.

“Mr. Yagi, Alan Dracula never pushes the buzzer. Maybe we can use this to our advantage.” It didn’t take a genius to know that the deer hadn’t even pressed the button once. In all the time they’ve played the deer had received rebound questions.

Mr. Yagi, nodded. He placed a hand under his chin in thought wondering what they could do to turn the tide. “Perhaps we can gather some information about the Train, young Midoriya what did the Cat share with you?”

Samantha had been surprisingly helpful in telling Izuku about the train and its purpose. How the number on his palm worked and why he was likely here. Izuku didn’t think he had a problem, he had only stepped inside the strange train in the woods because his friends ditched him, again. Nothing that hasn’t happened before.

Although Samantha stated that there were many reasons why a passenger was in the train. Personal loss, tragedy, or even destabilized home life’s. The train’s purpose was to help the passenger on a journey to self improvement and discovery. She was also insistent that he learn from the denizens of the train, they might surprise him.

Izuku thought all of this, he also thought back to the last week. The denizens talked, commenting on how the train was actually much safer than it used to be. Samantha especially made it a point to explain to him that the train isn’t some vacation like One-One described it, just as numbers go down, they can also go up. It’s completely possible to be worse off than you started.

“Kid, slow down!”

Izuku slapped his mouth shut. He went on a tangent, usually that only happened when he was talking about quirks, but then again despite its weirdness the train was a marvel of genius. “Sorry.”

“BREAK TIMES OVER PARTICIPANTS TIME TO RETURN TO JEOPARDY!”

The participants stepped onto their podiums, except Alan Dracula who hadn’t moved since starting to eat his. Music played to signal the start of the game and its continuation.

The Tragedy Mask appeared. He looked at the passengers. “You’re still here? I thought you would have just given up by now. Our current champion has a total of 3000 points while everyone else has 0. Can they turn the tide and win this match? Probably not.” The mask turned towards Alan Dracula. “Alan Dracula you cleared the first column so you may pick the next category. Will it be the Train, or Heroes? I would point towards it but fingers are only one other thing I’m missing from my life.”

Alan Dracula seemed to ignore the question instead shrinking to match the disappearing podium. This made it easier for the deer to continue eating.

“Heroes it is then. Heroes for $200…”

The screen changed: They have a quirk called, Outburst.

Izuku’s eyes widened, he knew this one! He quickly slammed the button, but he hadn’t been the first to reach it, it had been Mr. Yagi. The younger boy turned leaning forward, this was an easy one especially for a former pro.

Only Mr. Yagi was taking too long to answer, making Izuku visibly shake on his podium, he couldn’t take it anymore, he cried. “Who is the Smile Hero: Ms. Joke!”

He quickly clamped his hands over his mouth in horror. That’s not how you usually play games, everyone got a turn and he just bulldozed Mr. Yagi for not being fast enough, especially against a deer who took all his time in the world.

“I’m so sorry.”

Mr. Yagi scratched his head in clear embarrassment. “It’s alright young Midoriya. Her name just slipped my mind. I’ll get the next one.”

The speakers ding. “Correct, 200 points for the passengers. Not that it matters comedy is dead anyway…”

Izuku stood there shocked. They were really going to accept his answer even though it was said during Mr. Yagi’s turn? “But wait isn’t there a penalty?”

“Yes. I would think that’s how it works in games.”

Alan Dracula had finished his podium. He eyed the carpet intently.

Tragedy Mask just raised an eyebrow. “You're both passengers, it doesn't matter who gets the points anyway.”

Izuku couldn’t fault that logic. It really didn’t matter who won this game as long as it was either him or Mr. Yagi.

This arrangement repeated itself many times throughout the round. Mr. Yagi always made it a point to be the first to slam the button, Izuku imagined it was due to his hero skills. The faster you were the more people you saved.

Problem was that Mr. Yagi had some trouble with the Hero category. He answered a few questions correctly in the category and on the Train category, but not enough to catch up to Alan Dracula, who at this point eyed Izuku’s hair. The gaze made Izuku feel nervous.

They were on their final question now with the passengers and Alan Dracula tied. Izuku was honestly surprised at how many quirks this deer was able to show off. Despite its animal behavior it was smarter than he gave it credit for.

The question was complete the phrase one: “Rock on with these sparkling gazes! We've come to lend a paw and help!!!-

“We have come from... somewhere... Stingily cute and catlike! Wild, wild.. Pussycats!!!” Izuku cried.

The speakers dinged, balloons fell from the ceiling with confetti. The screens flashed the words: WINNER with an imaginary audience applauded. The door appeared from thin air and opened. 

Izuku grinned at Mr. Yagi and raced towards the older man, jumping excitedly. Izuku could almost feel the tears of happiness well into his eyes. “We did it! We did it! We won!”

Mr. Yagi starred and then smiled, placing a hand on top of the youngest head. “That we did, young Midoriya, that we did.”

“Congratulations you won now to meet your demise somewhere else.” Tragedy Mask said, floating away from the passengers.

Alan Dracula followed Izuku’s movements, his eyes never leaving the boy's hair.

Mr. Yagi gently pushed Izuku towards the exit. “Come young Midoriya, onto the next one.”

As they walked, they heard the distinct sound of hooves walking on metal when they exited the car. As they continued on the sound hadn’t stopped.

Izuku turned around, “Mr. Yagi, Alan Dracula is following us.”

Mr. Yagi squeaked, refusing to turn around. “Don’t stare, young Midoriya. Alan Dracula just probably happens to be going the same direction as we are.”

“I think he wants to eat my hair…”

“Don’t worry about it, he’ll leave once we get to the other train car.”

—-

Alan Dracula did not leave once they got to the next car. To Toshinori it seems like the deer had really taken a shine to the younger boy. Although the older man couldn’t be sure if the deer only wanted to eat the boys hair or genuinely liked the boy enough to follow him.

Toshinori couldn’t help but smile at the thought of Midoriya. He looked over the boy who was illuminated by the roaring campfire (which Alan Dracula made using heat vision). Midoriya was lying against Alan Dracula, both sound asleep.

The current car they were in had anthropomorphic camping tools running around and the denizens were kind enough to let the passengers borrow some wood and sleeping bags. Toshinori tried not to think about the implications when a sleeping bag allowed him to borrow a sleeping bag.

Now laying on the ground looking at the stars allowed Toshinori an opportunity to think. In hindsight the Jeopardy car gave Toshinori a lot to think about. He thought about the smile Midoriya wore on his face when he answered the questions correctly, the amount of fun the boy had in the car.

The man could understand why, the boy was clearly a fanboy with all his knowledge about heroes. The gleam in his eyes and excitement in answering the questions. That’s something Toshinori hadn’t experienced in a long time. Villains never took a day off.

Although when he thought back to the questions asked in that category, Toshinori couldn’t help but feel a little guilty. It’s irrational, he knows that, but how could he not know Recovery Girls birthday? That woman has been a close friend since she learned about his quirk.

Thinking back he couldn’t really remember anyone of his coworkers birthdays or even personal hobbies. The people he did know were from work and he hadn’t been in contact with them for a very long time. It’s almost pathetic.

Toshinori shook his head. There wasn’t any need to think that way, it was all for the greater good. He wanted to be the Symbol of Peace and put in all the work needed to make that dream a reality. Japan has been the safest it’s ever been since the era of Quirks. Toshinori was proud of that accomplishment.

He unconsciously placed a hand over his scar. Now though his time is limited, he couldn’t keep this up forever. It certainly didn’t help that other than being All Might there wasn’t much to go back too. 

Toshinori’s number was raised to 600.

He couldn’t even help open a stupid door for the little boy who needed his help getting home. Instead Midoriya stepped up and answered all the questions needed to win. Toshinori couldn’t help but feel a bit proud for the boy, he hadn’t expected a fanboy to steal the show.

Toshinori looked at Midoriya again, still asleep. Maybe that wasn’t a bad thing? He thought back to the past week with the boy. Midoriya was resourceful, hardworking, and overall a delight to be around. 

A boy like that shouldn’t have any trouble back home, Toshinori wondered why the boy was here at all. Not that it matters though, Toshinori will be there for him until he’s ready to go home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you have questions or just want to talk you can find me at Tumblr under the username keeperofhounds.


	3. The Forget Me Not Car

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while, hasn't it? Well just know that despite my absence have been working on this story from behind the scenes. I can say with clear confidence that this story will be completed. In fact, I already have a bunch of chapters already written. I can't wait to share it with all you lovely readers. Be sure to comment or leave a kudos. If you want to shout or talk to me with any questions you can find me on Tumblr.

“Goodbye! Thank you for your hospitality?” Izuku said, walking out of a train car, waving at the occupants.

The anthropomorphic silverware waved back, having stopped at the exit of the car.

Toshinori and Alan Dracula followed the young boy out of the car. The car was a cozy place with different types of denizens present, but what really made it a treat was its theme was. Toshinori had never spent any time in a Bed & Breakfast but if what the car showed them was any indication, then they were very homey. Although it was a challenge to keep their companion deer from eating the furniture.

Izuku was surprisingly on top of Alan Dracula, making sure the deer didn’t get away with any bad behavior. The amount of times the boy saves the unsuspecting chairs was a testament to the boy's patients and situation awareness.

Toshinori glanced at his palm, 600. The number was only getting higher, Toshinori couldn’t understand what he was doing wrong. Even Izuku’s number has risen to 120. The sight pained Toshinori. It was more time the boy would be separated from his loved ones.

The older man had questioned Izuku on his thoughts about the situation, but Izuku didn’t seem all that concerned. Toshinori didn’t put much thought into the boy's response, connecting it to the boy's age. The man knew that if he was Izuku’s age he would probably be thinking of this journey as one giant adventure.

Opening the door to the next car, Toshinori stepped aside to allow Izuku and Alan Dracula the chance to walk inside. They walked past the man through the door where the clanging of their feet over metal turned into crunching grass with each step.

Inside the train car was a meadow with different colored flowers. The flowers had distinct and variant colors which stood out in the meadow. 

Izuku ran towards the meadow, “Woah!” He gathered a small bouquet of flowers. “Check it out, Mr. Yagi! Look at all these flowers, they’re everywhere!”

Toshinori bent down to look at his companion's bounty. They were strange-looking flowers with the petals looking more like mouse ears than anything. The flowers were pretty, but there was something off about them.

The flowers moved, surprising Izuku who dropped them. When the bouquet landed on the floor it stood still, before shaking and scattering away from the boy.

Izuku gasped, dropping onto the ground to look closer to the moving flowers. They hadn’t been ordinary flowers, they were also mice. The petals of the flowers were the ears with the stems making little bodies from the mice.

Toshinori looked at Alan Dracula to see that his attempts at a meal were being met with a lot of resistance. Every time the deer tried to chomp on a flower, it would dash away.

It was another strange thing on this train.

“Come, young Midoriya. Leave the flower-mice alone, we still need to find the exit.” Toshinori said, walking farther through the meadow. Each step he took the meadow parted away creating a path they could walkthrough.

They walked in silence for several minutes, then they saw the familiar red door placed with seemingly no wall behind it.

Toshinori walked toward the door, maybe it would be one of those cars without a puzzle to solve? Placing his hands over the handle, Toshinori tried to twist the handle, only for it to not budge.

“Drat, it’s locked.” 

Izuku looked at the door, “Maybe it's another puzzle? Maybe we need to do something to unlock it.”

“It seems like, but what?”

Alan Dracula snorted still trying to eat the flower-mice, paying little attention to his companion's roadblock.

An insistent squeak caught the passenger's attention. Turning to the noise they saw a little mouse squeak, waving its paws to catch their attention.

Toshinori leaned down. “Hello, little one. Do you know how to open this door?”

Izuku watched the mouse with fascination. There were stars in his eyes and thoughts about how this was possible.

The mouse squeaked in confirmation, placing a paw on its head.

“Think?” Toshinori said, tilting his head. It seemed like they were going to play charades.

The mouse nodded, it placed its paw to its chest.

“Heart?”

Another nod.

It took another few minutes with nods and head shakes before the older man was able to decipher what the mouse was trying to say.

“So we need to think about someone we love?” Izuku asked.

The mouse nodded with a squeak.

“But it has to be a special memory,” Toshinori said.

The mouse jumped excitedly squeaking at the passengers.

“Mom…” Izuku mumbled, to him there was no doubt about who he loved, he also had a good memory.

Toshinori dropped to the floor with his legs crossed over each other. “Well, this should be simple.”

“Who do you love, Mr. Yagi?”

Toshinori smiled. “I had this teacher, my happiest memory was when she made me her student, you see she was a pro hero when I was in middle school-

Izuku gasped but kept his mouth shut despite the urge to ask questions. What was she like? What sort of hero was she? What was her quirk?

“She was kind and gave me all the tools I needed to succeed as a hero. She taught me all sorts of things. Once she made me run laps around the park as part of my training. Man, I hated that part.”

They both turned towards the door, nothing had happened.

“Maybe it wasn’t enough.”

“Well what about you, young Midoriya?”

Izuku hummed. “My mom is the best in the whole world, she’s nice and takes care of me...but she’s always worried about me..”

Toshinori witnessed Izuku's normally bright face fall. What could the boy have been thinking about? 

Tears welled in the boy's eyes, Izuku rubbed his hands over his eyes in a hopeless attempt to stop the tears. “She must be very worried… I didn’t mean to leave her…”

Izuku sobbed, he hadn’t given his mother much thought since he had been on the train. There was always so much going on and so many exciting puzzles and sights. Now though there was nothing stopping him from thinking of her and how he failed to keep her from worrying.

Izuku felt a hand over his head, looking up he saw Toshinori ruffle his hair in an attempt to comfort him. Even Alan Dracula starred watching the young boy sobbing.

“Don’t worry, young Midoriya. You’ll see your mother again.”

“I know that!”

“It’s okay to miss her…”

Izuku did miss her, there was no question. The train was fun, even sometimes scary, but it wasn’t home. “You know, my mom has always been there for me..” Izuku took a deep breath. “I’m not an easy son to have, I know because she’s always eating when I make her worry..”

Toshinori kept quiet, this sounded like something that the boy needed to get off his chest. There wasn’t much left to the imagination as to what Izuku was talking about him worrying about his mother. After all, it’s hard being quirkless.

“I’m not dumb, I know she tries to hide it, but I notice her looks when she gets home. She’s always worried about what I’m going to do and she thinks I’m setting myself up for disappointment. Maybe a smart part of me thinks so too… I hate that she worries!” Izuku sniffed, this was something that had been on his mind for a very long time, possibly since he was diagnosed as quirkless. “But she’s the best part of my day, she’s always there to make me smile, she’s always there to make me feel better. She gives the best hugs and makes the best katsudon.” 

Izuku gave Toshinori a watery smile. “Right now I would give anything to have a home-cooked meal.”

He thought of that time on his fifth birthday, no one had come, not even Kacchan. Izuku knew he wasn’t very popular, but he still hadn’t expected anyone to come for his birthday. His mom did everything to salvage the day, and she was partially successful. It still hurt that no one came, but she was there.

The number on his palm glowed. 

Another more recent memory came up, she often hummed when she cooked. Izuku didn’t know the words of the song but he always liked hearing her hum. To him, it meant that there wasn’t anything for her to worry about. It always seemed that she was humming less often as he grew older.

The number shifted.

Sure he hated when his mom worried about him, but he loved her no matter what.

The number stopped at 100.

Suddenly the dirt in front of him glowed in bright rainbow colors. He covered his eyes with his hands to shield them. When the light died down he was met with a green flower-mouse.

“Squeak.” The mouse said, scratching its ears.

“Woah…” Izuku turned to Toshinori, who gasped at the event. “Look what happened, a mouse appeared! Maybe I thought of the right thing.”

“Squeak.” The mouse said in confirmation, avoiding Alan Dracula’s attempt at eating it. The mouse hit the deer's nose in retaliation.

Izuku turned to Toshinori. “So, what about you? Can you think of anything?”

Toshinori stared down at the dirt, getting his quirk, One for All from his master had been one of the best memories he’s ever had. Nana Shimura was a kind woman who was struck down too soon, she had seen something in a quirkless middle school student and had taken a chance on him. He owed everything to her.

He thought of the time spent with his master, the memories he was thinking about weren’t going to open that door. He turned to Izuku and wondered what the child had thought about creating that mouse. 

“Young Midoriya what did you think about creating that mouse?”

“I just thought of my mom and how much I love her.” Izuku looked up shyly. “She isn’t a hero like All Might, but she’s my hero. It’s all the little things that she does that make her the most important person in the world for me.”

“Little things, huh.” Toshinori closed his eyes deep in thought, a hand under his chin. 

Nana is gone now, if given the chance he would probably give up One for All just for the chance to see her again. Although that’s not something she would ever want. She was a kind woman who took the time to raise a lonely boy with no one in the world.

The impact the woman had on the pro-heroes life was immense. He always had her in his thoughts, wondering if she was proud of how far he had come. Unlike Izuku she wouldn’t be waiting for him off the train, she’s been dead for a long time. Just thinking about her always made Toshinori grieve just a bit, the time they had together would always feel too short.

Although thinking back, there was always something to remind Toshinori of her. The snow reminded him of the day when she took time out of her day to listen to a quirkless boy's dream under a bridge. She hadn’t made fun of him for his dream instead she listened and told him that he was just a little bit crazy.

Toshinori smiled, Nana didn’t really care about the thoughts of others. 

She encouraged him outside of training, helped him with his homework even though she didn’t know half the things being taught at school. The food she cooked wasn’t the best, but he would always eat it anyway. Even after all those years, he wouldn’t mind eating badly cooked food if it was from her.

Just as it had done with Izuku the ground glowed, when the light died out in its place was a yellow flower-mouse that squeaked.

Turning to the door, the passengers saw one of the mice jump on the handle with a key in its paws. The mouse placed the key in the door, unlocking it. The handle twisted opening the door to the outside.

“We did it!” Izuku said.

“Yeah, we did.”

As the group walked out waving goodbye to the mice, Toshinori couldn’t help but think of Gran Torino, the man who scared the ever-living daylights out of him. He didn’t think the man had any other friends other than Nana. Those two were a dynamic duo. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to talk with the man who knew her the best. After all, he wasn’t the only one who lost someone on that terrible day.

Toshinori looked at Izuku, who was trying to keep Alan Dracula from eating the flower-mice as he tried to push the deer out the door. That boy had a mother waiting for him off the train. Who did he have waiting for him?

He knew there were people who cared, but he was ashamed to even face them. In a crazy way, he missed the old man too. It wouldn’t hurt to visit sometime. Toshinori knew the man cared in his own twisted way. The man was always willing to see him.

Toshinori’s number shifted to 457.

There wasn’t anything to fear. Even though Gran Torino terrified him, the man was family. Nana’s gone but he still had Gran at least. Now if only his legs would stop shaking at the very thought of the old man.


	4. The Lilliputian Car

Toshinori couldn’t help but stare at his hand, how could he not? The number had fallen to 457 when it had last been 600. He didn’t really understand how the number system worked but it was at least a step closer to getting off the train.

It had been a month since then, he wouldn’t admit it out loud but he hadn’t felt better. The group had not encountered much danger on the train only meeting denizens. 

Izuku did find it strange that they hadn’t met any other passengers, but Toshinori had explained that considering the size of the train it’s likely that they might never meet another passenger other than themselves. The train was simply too long and it would be just as likely to walk past each other than to ever meet considering the styles of some of the cars.

That isn’t to say that they never saw evidence of past passengers. Black spray paint on reflective surfaces popped up from time to time. Toshinori shook his head at that, graffiti on other people’s property was no way to behave. 

Although Izuku did bring up that maybe they did it because it had something to do with their quirk. The kid pointed out that there was a kid in his class who could read minds using his ears but had to wear headphones to stop it. The quirk was constantly on because apparently, the kid had suffered a head injury damaging the pet which controlled the quirk.

Either way, they couldn’t know the actual reason the surfaces were painted but they at least hoped whoever did it was able to make it off the train safely.

Other cars showed signs of damage. They usually contained areas with old scorch marks and shattered glass. In Toshinori’s opinion, it was arson plain and simple, even though the damage seemed ages old, the man-made sure to keep Izuku close during those times.

Now they were in a car which reminded Toshinori of a panorama he saw in a museum during his college days in the United States. Everything was just so small, although there were giant plants like magnifying glasses littered around the car. Toshinori couldn’t help but wonder who thought up these cars.

Izuku walked toward the magnify-plants with Alan Dracula close behind him. The boy jumped up grabbing a petal dragging the limb down to his level. “Oh, no.”

“What is it?” Toshinori asked, walking towards the boy. There shouldn’t be anything wrong or dangerous, but you never knew.

Izuku pointed at the lens, it was cracked.

Alan Dracula was eating something which crunched at a nearby flower. Izuku and Toshinori had long since given up on trying to keep the deer from eating what he could get his mouth on, but that crunch sounded suspiciously like glass.

Toshinori tried not to think about it, especially when Izuku shivered at each crunch the deer made. Alan Dracula would be fine.

Toshinori looked around, he had just noticed the scattered stones in the area. Someone had thrown them, this had been deliberate. The older man easily pulled down another flower; this one was shattered.

“Hey, get out of here, stowaways!” A voice cried from the distance.

Izuku and Toshinori stepped away from the flowers, looking for the source of the voice. It sounded close.

“Not there, you morons, down here!”

Looking down they see plastic-looking men wheeling what looked like a speaker. Despite its size, it clearly sounded powerful considering how little the figures were.

“That’s not nice to say,” Izuku said, looking at the figures. His mom had told him when meeting new people you should always be polite. Kacchan was never polite with anyone which made him a sort of exception to the rule.

“That’s not nice to say.” The little figurine said, mockingly. “Does it look like I care, stowaway? Just get out of our car before we make you, we don’t need any more stowaways causing any more problems for us.”

The figure looked like they were going to charge at the passengers before another figure placed a hand on their shoulder. “Now see here, Tony. Just because they’re passengers doesn’t mean they're like those no good stowaways who roughed up our town here.”

Tony yanked himself away from the figure. “I don’t care, Gerry! There is no way I’m allowing these stowaways to stay in this car any longer than needed. They’ll only cause trouble.”

Toshinori bent down, he wanted to try to get on eye level with the residents of the car. “If you need help then maybe we can help you rebuild.” It's not like they have anywhere to go right now.

“Yeah, we can help rebuild your car! We aren’t villains, honest.” Izuku said.

Meanwhile, Alan Dracula had shrunken into the size of the figures and was enjoying some grass. Although he seemed very interested in the wire connected to the megaphone. Izuku and Toshinori paid no attention to the deer too used to his antics.

“I mean you said other passengers damaged your car, so let us help repair it as an apology,” Toshinori said, if anything can be done he will.

Tony glared, while Gerry shook his head waving his hands. “No, we can’t.”

“That’s right, we don’t want your help.”

Gerry looked at Tony. “That’s not it, Tony.” He looked up at the passengers. “It’s not your fault and this is a matter of pride, I mean what would we be if we allowed everyone you passed by to solve our problems? It’s our home, so we’ll fix it.”

Izuku picked up Alan Dracula who looked like he was about to start chewing on the wire. “But we want to help.”

“And I thank you kindly, but you’ll be more help if you leave.”

Izuku puffed his cheeks, it didn’t seem right to just leave them to clean up a mess that someone else made. He stared at Toshinori to try to see what the older man thought.

Toshinori wore a frown on his face, looking harder he could see the amount of effort the little figures were putting in their reconstruction efforts. The rope pulled up wooden beams, while others were sweeping up glass and broken stones. They didn’t have quirks to clear away the damage or even any specialized equipment. It was seriously impressive.

Although Toshinori couldn’t understand it, why refuse help? Every time he appeared as All Might everyone was grateful for his help. Asking permission to help was never even the issue. Although given the sheer size difference between him and Izuku when compared to the residents, they might cause more harm than good.

Toshinori bowed, he could at least let them have their pride. “Alright I understand, can you please point us to the exit, please?”

“No problamo, it’s just over the hill, you can’t miss it.”

“Thank you.” Toshinori turned to Izuku. “Come Young Midoriya, we need to continue forward.”

A cry for help echoed through the car.

“What the-”

Toshinori grabbed the little cart carefully walking towards the sound of screaming and shouting. Izuku was close behind him with his hands cupped to prevent Alan Dracula from wandering off.

A stick had landed on one of the figures trapping them. The other figures around them were trying to pull them from under the stick but to no avail.

“Put us down right now!” Tony said, gripping on the cart.

Toshinori gently placed the cart onto the ground. He was wondering what he could do, only for Izuku to grab onto his hand and lean towards the crowd of people.

Seeing what the young man had in mind, Toshinori tightened his grip to keep Izuku steady and prevent the boy from falling face-first into the ground.

Seeing the shadow hover over the crowd caused the figures to run off leaving the trapped figure on the ground. They screamed and shouted all the while Tony and Gerry tried to keep the folks calm. When Izuku was able to reach the branch he was able to gently lift it up he pulled himself back with the stick in hand.

The figures stared silently watching the bigger people. It was only broken when the figure who was trapped cried out, “I’m free!”

Cheering erupted from the crowd. High pitched and surprisingly loud given their size.

Jerry and Tony shared an uneasy look between themselves unnoticed by the figures around them.

“You must stay for dinner!” One of the figures said.

“Where’d you come from!?” Another asked.

“Can you help us with other things?!”

This continued for the rest of the day with the residents feeding Toshinori, Izuku, and Alan Dracula small, but no less filling dishes. They presented the groups with problems that needed to be solved with Izuku and Toshinori being more than happy to help out. Alan Dracula continued to eat as he prioritized food over anything else, except maybe his friends. 

“Little passenger I’m feeling under the weather can you please take me to my home!?”

“Yes, miss.”

“Tall passenger, you mind getting one of them apples off the tree?!”

“Of course.”

By the end of the day, Izuku and Toshinori had been run ragged. Toshinori was honestly shocked he hadn’t been coughing up blood but then again the tastes he had done weren’t all that hard compared to what he normally did off the train. Izuku yawned, tired but unwilling to admit it, it usually fell on Toshinori to call it a day.

As the group gathered a good distance away from the town, they created a fire to keep warm. Izuku laid on Alan Dracula as the deer snored loudly but peacefully, sometimes his muscles turned into pillows.

At the distance a familiar cart sounded, looking in the direction of the noise Toshinori saw headlights flashing towards them, it was Tony and Gerry. 

The passengers looked at the cart as the figures turned on their loudspeaker. 

“I just wanted to thank you for the help and time you’ve taken out of your busy days to help us,” Jerry said.

“Oh, it’s no probl-” 

“But you’ve gotta go,” Tony said, interrupting Toshinori.

“What, why?” Izuku asked, he couldn’t understand what the hurry was for them to leave.

“What Tony is trying to say...is that while we are grateful for your help and assistance we-”

“We don’t need it.”

“Please stop interrupting me.”

Toshinori could only stare. “What’s wrong with helping you? I really don’t mind.”

Tony groaned, ruffling his hands through his hair. “It’s because those lazy bums don’t need your help they want it.”

“Is there a difference?”

“Yes!” Jerry and Tony cried, frustrated.

“Didn’t you notice the requests were a little strange?”

Izuku and Toshinori thought back. They thought back to Sandy, who wanted a lift home after feeling under the weather. Lance, who wanted help getting a giant apple from the apple tree. They thought of all the residents of the town they had helped, but they really couldn’t think of anything.

Seeing their confusions Tony sighed. “They could have all done it themselves. They used you! Not only are you stowaways no good but you’re mighty stupid.”

“Be nice, Tony.”

“I’m just saying the truth.”

Jerry turned to Toshinori and Izuku. “Please leave you might think it’s pride that we are refusing your help but that’s only part of it. Those rascals who destroyed part of it are over and done with. It’s our town and we need to fix it up. We know we can do it as a community. We have the tools, the skills, and the know how.”

“They’re just too damn lazy to do it themselves half the time.”

“Thank you, Tony. The point is this is our town and we’re going to fix it and we don’t need your help, sure it might take longer but my goodness won’t we be mighty proud when all is said and done.”

Toshinori couldn’t help but smile at the odd figures. They really wanted the residents themselves to pull themselves out of a trying time. It’s admirable, how long has it been since he has seen anyone else just step up and take the reins in rebuilding. Most of the time the news was saturated with news about heroes vs. villains but never about the little people within the community.

When was the last time he had stepped back and allowed a simple problem to resolve itself? That time he saved a cat from a tree that didn't need All Might but he had jumped in anyway, not that he regretted it but was he really needed? He guesses to an outsider some problems look bigger than they really are.

“I guess not everyone needs a hero to save them, especially when they can just save themselves.”

“You darn, right”

“But what if something happens?” Izuku asked, he didn’t want to just leave them.

Toshinori looked at the younger. “Then I guess we’ll just have to come back if that happens.”

“Bu-”

Toshinori walked towards Izuku, placing his hands over his holding bending to catch eye contact. “Young Midoriya try as we might we can never be everywhere at once, other times people want to use this as a learning experience, and who are we to take that away?”

Izuku looked down, he tilted his head to see the figures Jerry waved while Tony glared. Then he looked at Toshinori who nodded.

“Okay,” Izuku said, standing up. He shook the deer in an attempt to wake Alan Dracula up, it's always best to leave before anyone notices you're gone. That way there aren’t any problems.

Toshinori turned towards the pair. “Sorry for overstaying your welcome.”

“It’s alright.”

“Just get out!”

The passengers and a very disgruntled deer walked through the door. It was a nice little while and adventure while it lasted, too bad they needed to find some other car to sleep in.


End file.
